White House to Assad: Don't stall chemical weapons probe

4/9/13 1:35 PM EDT

The White House is urging the Syrian government to admit United Nations investigators hoping to figure out whether chemical weapons have been used in the country and, if so, who was responsible.

The comments from the U.S. Tuesday came a day after U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon and aides said that an inspection team was ready to be dispatched from Cyprus, but was awaiting assurances that it could investigate all reports of chemical weapons use. The government of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad is reportedly seeking to limit the inquiry to a single location where officials claimed rebels used such weapons last month.

"We'd urge the Syrian Government to provide that approval as soon as possible," National Security Council Spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden said in a statement provided Tuesday in response to a query from POLITICO. "The Assad regime – and its supporters – can back up its claim that the regime’s request for an investigation was not just a diversionary tactic by supporting an investigation into all credible allegations and by fully cooperating with the U.N., including by providing the unfettered access to U.N. investigators."

"We will provide appropriate information, expertise, and resources as requested to support the UN investigation into any and all credible allegations of chemical weapons use. We urge others in the international community to do the same," Hayden added. "Outside of the U.N. process, we continue closely monitoring Syria’s proliferation-sensitive materials and facilities and are actively consulting with our regional and international partners to underscore our common concern about the security of these materials."

President Barack Obama said last month that the use of chemical weapons would be a "game changer" in terms of U.S. involvement in the conflict and that the U.S. was eager for the U.N. to investigate claims from the government and the armed opposition about use of such arms.